Westside Cowboy, “Pin Up Boys”

Are you excited for this Westside Cowboy album? You should be. The young Manchester rockers will release their debut LP It Goes On in August, and after lead single " Kick Stones (The Boys) " and their prior EPs , we're chomping at the bit for the rest of this thing to drop. We get a second preview from the It Goes On tracklist today with the release of "Pin Up Boys."

This one's sung by guitarist Reuben Haycocks, though bassist Aoife Anson O’Connell's backing vocals are a crucial component. The band says "Pin Up Boys" kept getting "heavier and more aggro" at their live shows, and the recording captures some of that unhinged energy. At the same time, this is a tightly composed pop song performed by a band in full control. That tension between polish and raw expression is a key feature of Westside Cowboy's approach, the sense that you're hearing an extremely accessible band that isn't pandering to the middle to achieve it.

"Pin Up Boys" was written a year and a half ago using an acoustic guitar, a drum machine sample pad and some screwdrivers as drumsticks. It is by far the longest serving song on the album and the one that we have played the most live, which was a blessing and a curse when we came to record. After realising this song was set in its ways, we thought the recording should be a somewhat faithful version of the live performance. We hope you get something out of it.

I do, Westside Cowboy! Jack Shep from SNL UK directed the "Pin Up Boys" video, and he shared a statement too:

Westside Cowboy’s performance style is so energetic and distinct. They clearly have a mountainous future ahead of them, and it was awesome to work with young people at the precipice of starting something really special together. In the video we wanted to capture the band’s dynamism, through a spotlight. We follow this fixed, malevolent spotlight chasing our hero (played by the band’s mate, Will) as he tries to escape its gaze. As he runs, he manages to escape, splitting into a new spotlight with a new version of the band. The whole thing begins to buckle and shatter.

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